The present invention relates generally to evaporator fans for refrigerator/freezers and more particularly, though not exclusively, to a plastic evaporator fan assembly.
An evaporator fan assembly has conventionally been provided in an evaporator compartment of a household refrigerator/freezer for circulating cooling air through storage compartments. The fans generally comprise an electric motor operatively connected to a fan in a shroud assembly containing both. Refrigerator/freezers are generally household appliances, and it is therefore desirable to keep noise levels to a minimum. During operation of typical evaporator fans, turbulence may cause noise levels to increase. U.S. Pat. No. 5,244,347 issued to Gallivan on Sep. 14, 1993, discusses arranging motor support members in a non-radial arrangement to minimize a creation of turbulence by the operation of the fan and thereby minimize noise levels. However, the fan disclosed in Gallivan must be preassembled, increasing its costs. Further, if any repairs are required, the entire assembly must be removed and replaced. It is therefore desirable to provide an evaporator fan assembly that is both easy to install and repair.
As Gallivan illustrates, it is typical to integrally secure the motor to the fan assembly. However, recent attempts have been made to removably secure the motor to the fan assembly such that installation and repair can be simplified. One such attempt, shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,232,687 issued to Hollenbeck on May 5, 2001, shows a motor that includes a snap-connection to the fan assembly. However, the motor of Hollenbeck is secured within the fan orifice and therefore minimizes fan effectiveness. It is therefore desirable to provide a fan motor that is easy to install while maximizing fan effectiveness.
Accordingly, a primary feature of the present invention is the provision of an evaporator fan assembly and method for installing the same in a refrigeration unit that overcomes problems found in the prior art.
Another feature of the present invention is the provision of an evaporator fan assembly and method for installing same that simplifies installation and assembly.
A further feature of the present invention is the provision of an evaporator fan assembly and method for installing same that maximizes the effectiveness of the evaporator fan.
A still further feature of the present invention is the provision of an evaporator fan assembly and method for installing same that minimizes the noise level of the evaporator fan.
These and other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following specification and claims.
The present invention generally comprises an evaporator fan assembly including a shroud having a fan orifice and a plurality of legs that are irregularly staggered and radially spaced outwardly around the fan orifice with a motor removably mounted thereon. Preferably, the shroud legs extend away from the fan orifice and are connected to one another by a motor mount. The motor mount generally includes a hole through which the drive shaft of the motor may be inserted.
The motor is preferably mounted away from the fan orifice in a manner that allows the user to simply snap fit the motor to the shroud. Preferably, the motor is mounted by using a motor clip. The motor clip includes a pair of legs each terminating in a hook or catch secured to one or more of the shroud legs by a cross member or support bar. The tension inherent in the motor clip keeps the hooks or catches in a locked position.
After the motor has been secured to the motor mount and the shroud legs by the motor clip, a fan having a plurality of blades is secured to the drive shaft. In this manner, the evaporator fan assembly of the present invention allows the evaporator fan to operate with minimal interference from the evaporator fan motor. Further, during operation, the irregularly staggered and radially outwardly spaced arrangement of the legs minimizes the build-up of turbulence and therefore keeps noise levels of the evaporator fan assembly to a minimum.